By David Avitabile
MIDDLEBURGH - Mark your calendars for 2050 when the latest Middleburgh time capsule will be unearthed at the Memorial Park on Main Street.
The time capsule was buried Friday afternoon with a high school yearbook, menus, photos, newspapers, shirts, a parking meter, Rotary items, and many other items.
The time capsule also included many of the same items that were buried 28 years ago and unearthed last year. The photos for both time capsules were taken by David Avitabile and printed by the Middleburgh Library. Melanie Laraway, the outgoing Middleburgh village clerk, and deputy clerk Becky Kelley, the incoming village clerk, headed the effort to find items to put in the time capsule.
Mayor Tim Knight spoke before the time capsule was lowered into the ground and buried.
"What will the year 2025 mean to future generations? That is a question I will not attempt to answer at this time. When the Village last buried a time capsule in the late nineties, the world was a very different place from our own today. Occurring 14 years before Hurricane Irene impacted our valley community, many of the buildings, businesses, and homes that once stood here are no more, as evidenced by the many photographs that David Avitabile took at the time.
"Now, 14 years later, there stands many buildings, businesses, and homes that represent growth and investment in our community. As economic downturns, natural disasters, and time itself have closed many doors, new ones have opened. The Neighbors Eating Together (NET) Dinners did not exist 28 years ago, but they do now as an outpouring of community support after Irene. The Oktoberfest is also a relatively new event at just seven years old, but it has quickly grown into being a local favorite. The M&S Railroad Depot has been restored and preserved; the Art Park was created and built; Timothy Murphy Park and William Morton Park have been established. The Village Community Pool endures, and with any luck, will be improved for future generations to use.
"Despite all the change here in Middleburgh, there have been some constants: our community is served by business pillars like Hubie's, MidTel, Middleburgh Hardware, Mrs. K’s, and many more, while aided communally by organizations such as Rotary and our local churches. Looking beyond Middleburgh, the world has also changed. When our last capsule was placed, no American knew of the phrase 'War on Terror.' We have fought two wars since then, and we have watched as war has burned through places like Ukraine, Israel, and Libya. The Internet was very different in 1997. Dial-up made a horrendous sound when you logged on, and Artificial Intelligence was just a movie idea to Steven Spielberg. Who could have imagined we would spend more time talking to A.I. than humans 28 years ago?
"My hopes for the future are simple: that humanity remembers grace and humility are not only positive character traits, but necessary functions to combat an increasingly cynical world; that the Village of Middleburgh continues to embody the community spirit that made me move here when I was just 18 years old and later run for Mayor; and, that my future children can look back at the items, photos, and words contained within this capsule in 2050 with the same zeal I feel for them today."
The capsule was buried in the same spot in the Memorial Park on upper Main Street and will duplicate what was in the original so the public to give a 50-year picture of the village.
A sealer machine was used so moisture will not get in the items. Funeral director Matt Coltrain donated a new and better container for the items.
The former time capsule was buried on October 11, 1997.
Last August, Middleburgh village officials traveled back in time to that date when they unearthed and opened a time capsule that was buried before the Fall Festival parade 28 years ago. The time capsule, a marble internment box donated by funeral director Joe Spink, had been buried in upper Memorial Park.
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